Safari to Lake Baringo

a surprisingly fascinating area

Lake Baringo is the most northerly of the four main lakes in the Great Rift Valley area of Southwest Kenya.

This beautiful stretch of unusually fresh water is encircled by mountains, dotted with islands and inhabited by hippos and crocodiles.

The lake is also rich with tilapia fish, ensuring that the shoreline is dotted with small fishing villages, fronted by handfuls of tiny traditional papyrus boats

The real joy of the Lake Baringo area is how little of the tourist traffic from Naivasha and Nakuru makes it up this far. It really is a world apart.

Exploring the lake by motorboat and kayak can be great fun, notably in the northeast corner where there are some interesting channels and lagoons which are a little bit reminiscent of the Okavango Delta in Botswana.

Another highlight is paying a visit to one of the authentic Pokot villages, authentic tribes-people who continue to have a deserved reputation as fearsome warriors, but who are warm and welcoming hosts.

The birding around the shores of Lake Baringo can be exceptional, both for resident and migrant species.

The hot springs and flamingos of Lake Bogoria are only a short drive away.

We have long since been fans of Lake Baringo and have gone to great lengths over the years to find ways to include it in trips. But it remains a very difficult place to convince people to visit.

The closure of the one decent lodge, Samatian Island, after the floods of 2012 was a further blow. The fact that it has now reopened as a self-catering facility means that it now only tends to appeal to residents on long weekend fishing trips.

The core issue is that this Central Rift Area has become heavily populated and the main road is very busy. The whole run from Nairobi, past Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru to Lake Baringo, is really not a very pleasant experience these days.

unfortunately the area rarely appeals to our guests